The Golden Age of Gilded Age Cocktails

Join returning guest Don Spiro for this elegant and classy journey through the 19th century and find out just how the cocktail developed and how so much of what we love about fine cocktails today actually began in the Gilded Age. 

To celebrate a special occasion even if it’s just a typical Tuesday, there is nothing like a finely crafted cocktail to enhance the experience. While many think that so much of what we think of classic cocktail history began in the Jazz Age in the 1920’s (even though America was in the middle of Prohibition), the truth is that much happened about fifty years before in the Gilded Age. 

Vintage beverage specialist Don Spiro takes listeners through the history that includes just when a mixed drink began to be called a “cocktail”, what the very first cocktail actually was, and most importantly, how the great Gilded Age hotels like New York’s Waldorf and the Hoffman House contributed to cocktail history. Don shares some of his favorite vintage cocktails, his favorite vintage cocktail books and stories of some of the most famous and influential celebrity bartenders. You’ll hear the histories of some of today’s favorites including the Manhattan, the Martini, the Daiquiri and, as a special bonus, Don has created a brand new cocktail — The Gilded Gentleman. Join us to find out just what’s in it and how you can make it at home!